tagged: family, holocaust

Collecting two million names

Posted by Rose Rosen in Arts & Culture, Tribal Concerns

Rose Rosen reflects on a summer of collecting names of those who died in the Holocaust who have not been named.

It is always this time of year that people ask, “How did you spend your summer?”

Well, this summer I have an answer:  I have been spending my summer spreading the word about the Yad Vashem Shoah Victims’ Names Recovery Project. It has at once been both daunting and fulfilling.

A few months ago, I wrote about how I spent an afternoon with my aunt and cousin speaking about her relatives who perished.  I found out many things I never knew about my family.  My aunt remembered the names of he nieces and nephews who were just 4,6 and 18 months when they perished in the gas chamber at Auschwitz.  Stories change over time, so it is critical to do this work now, while that generation is still around.  Once I heard that a substantial number of the names of the victims of the Holocaust have not been collected, I had to do something.

With the help of the Florida Holocaust Museum, we have worked hard to collect many of the names from the survivors in the area. But our work is far from complete. I couldn’t ask for a better fit for me when it comes to volunteer work.

People always ask me how this is possible; “After all, didn’t the Nazis keep meticulous records?”  Well, they did, but not the names of their victims. They had list of shoes, coats, jewelry, lampshades, really all of the personal items, but not the names.  So this is our work now.  Now WE must collect the names. Certainly it is both our obligation and our duty.

Now, more than 150 Pages Of Testimony later, I feel we are making a dent.  Survivors are coming forward and giving the names of their family and friends who died in the Shoah.  Children of survivors are also sitting down with us and giving pages of those names they knew.  My incredibly dedicated volunteers have penned press releases, contacted all of the Jewish organizations and sat with the survivors.  I have given many speeches, talked with people individually, been on the radio and I hope to do much more.

My passion for this project stems from a very personal connection.  My parents both survived the Holocaust and they each lost their entire families (except my father who fortunately had a brother also survive.)  We never spoke of their tragedy while I was growing up.  I never knew the names of their family members or even how many brothers and sisters they each had.  It was just never discussed.  It took until after they both died before I realized my gaping hole of knowledge about my family.  So I set out on my journey of discovery.  Armed with a computer and the Internet, I attempted to find the names and the stories of my family. It has taken me years to find the names of my aunts and uncles and grandparents. In fact when I found my mother in the on the Central Database of Shoah Victim’s Names she was listed as having died in the war. After working with Yad Vashem to correct this problem, it inspired me to bring this project to central Florida.

We just need to find the survivors and get them to spend the time doing this.  I find there is a definite disconnect between this project and the entire survivor community.  Most survivors believe that they have already completed these pages when in fact they have probably not done so.

To that end, please help me find them and encourage them to do this important work.  My volunteers and me will be by your side every step of the way.

What are your thoughts about this project?

Has it been so long since the war that we shouldn’t spend the time ensuring that the victims will always be remembered? Some 70 years have passed, but it is still incumbent upon us to ensure that the victims will always be remembered.

Do you have family members or know people whose family who perished in the Holocaust? Contact me and we’ll work together to  make sure we get their names recorded and properly honor their memory. (You don’t need to live in Florida for us to help you either — we can help you where ever you may be.)

For more information about the The Shoah Victims’ Names Recovery Project and how to get involved, go here.

Rose Rosen is a busy casting director with her roots in journalism.  Having been brought up with both parents surviving the Holocaust, Rose has a unique take on life.  Serving as Central Florida Coordinator of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Names Recovery Project suits her need for filling in the gaps of her past as well as helping others find theirs. When not casting, Rose is a life coach for actors.  Rose can be reached at castingbyroserosen@gmail.com